Improvement in clothes-boieers



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Letters Patent No. 91,967, dated June 29, 1869.

IMPRovEMENT m CLOTHES-Boreus.

The Schedule referred to in these Letters Patent and making part of the same.

To all persoas to whom these presents may come:

Be a knownumr I, J, H. ummm, of West Dover, in the county of -Windham, eand State' of Yermont, have invented an Improved Apparatus forv yBoiling and Cleansing Clothes or Fabrics and I do hereby declare the same to be fullyudescribed in the following speciiication, vand represented in the accompanying drawings,fof which- Figure 1 is a top view,

Figure 2, a longitudinal and vertical section, and

Figure 3, a transverse section of' it.

Figure 4 is a top view ot' it with the cover removed.

In such drawings-` v A represents an elongated vessel or kettle, provided with a removable cover, B.

Extending around "the inten'or vertical surface of such vessel, is an annular space, C, which is open at bottom and closed at top, except that there it opens into a series of short tubes, a a a, &c., projecting from it in manner as ,re'presented There is arranged within the vessel A, a grate or basket, D, which is supported on or near the bottom c of the said vessel. l

This grate, clothes-rack, or basket, is essential to prel vent the clothes from obstructing the owage oi' water into the mouth of and up the annular space C, or its return from the upper or lower educts. 1t is also very useful in other respects.

When the boiler A is filled or supplied with clothes, and in operation, the boiling suds are compelled to lind an' outlet through the annular space, and out of the educts and up on the clothes, thence passing down l throughor amongst them, and through the grate or clothes-basket, andagain into the annular space.V

lThe said grate or clothes-basket may beprovided with short feet, to raise its bottom a little off the bottom c of the vessel A, but this is not an essential matter, as the basket-bottom may rest directly on the bottom c.

The water-space, enclosed bythe annular space G,

is open at bottom, as represented, in order to let the basket go down and rest ou the bottom c. The

clothes, therefore, are iu the basket and interval space over it, the annular space around them suteing, with the jet-tubes or educts, to eii'ect the due circulation of the suds and steam.

Furthermore, at the two ends of the vessel, and at about half the height of the' clothes-space thereof, there are two pipes, f j, leading out'ot` the annular space C. v

These lower educls ff serveto discharge the water and steam into the middle part ot' the mass ot' clothes, and also answer to throw the liquid and steam upon the clothes, when the boiler is but 'halt' full of water.

A frame, E, formed of two parallel bars, g g,and

four, or any other suitable number of cross-bars, arranged as represented, rests on the pipes f f, so asto keep the clothes from clogging theiropen ends.

The cover B is made concave. on its upper surface, and Vis provided with a slot, h, extending lengthwise through its middle.

The slotV may be furnished with an auxiliary cover, F, which, in order that it may be held 'in place, may

2 be slipped underneath two springs or ears, t' t, fixed on the top of the main cover.

When the cover is in place ou the vessel, the slot of the cover is to be below the plane of the upper edge ofthe said vessel,'the purpose ofthe concavity of the top, and the slot thereof' arranged with respect to the upper edge ofthe vessel, being to preventwater, while in ebullition in the vessel, from flowing over its edge and down upon the surface on which the vessel may be supporte There may bc a handle, la, to the main two other handles, l l, to the vessel A.

lVhen thesaid vessel A is charged with a Saponaceous liquid, and with clothes to be cleansed by such liquid, and heat is applied to the outer surface of the vessel A, so as'to heat the liquid contents, the steam and water will be forced through the annular space and its discharging-tubes upon the clothes, and the liquid will descend through the grate or basket, so that there will be a constant current circulating through the clothes.

Should the water over-boil, instead of boiling over the upper edge of the vessel A, it will flow up through the opening of the cover, and afterward pass back through such opening into the vessel.

The apparatus so made operates, to great advantage in 'cleansing clothes by steam and hot water, charged or not with soap or other detergent. l

I do not claim a vessel having a chamber in its lower part, and one or more, pipesleading up therefrom, soas to discharge water when'boiling 'into the upper part of the vessel, and upon clothes when in such vessel.

'With the annular space extending around the entire vessel, and provided with educts, as described, the water is enabled to operate to much better advantage, and 'to flow more readily and in greater amounts on the clothes.

cover, and

The sides or side-bars of the grate operate to keep the clothes more or less from contact with the sides ot' theboiling-ehamber, and so as to prevent them from getting into the mouth of the annular chamber.

By keepingfthe clothes near the bottom of the mass from contact with the sides of the chamber, they will be cleansed to better advantage, the currents dis-V charged by the educts, serving to keep the mass at its top away from the sides.

rIhus it will be seen that the basket, with the annular space C and its educts, performs an important function or functions.

I make no claim to any of the devices or combinations as exhibited in either voi' the United States patent-s, No. 2,816, of reissues,cand No. 82,817, No. 83,- 566, and No. 85,031, of original issues, all of such being on clothes-boilers.

I claim my improved arrangement of the annular chamber or space C, the clothes-chamber and basket of the vessel A, thesaid annular space communicating at top and bottom with such clothes-chamber as de'- scribed, and the basket, under sueh arrangement, beiner separate from the walls or sides of the clotheschamber, and extended np within and below them, in manner substantially as represented and described..

I also claim the combination and arrangement of the frame E with the educts f f, the Vessel A, the ane nular space C, and its upper series of educt's.

J. H. RICKE'IT.

Witnesses:

W. H. J oNns, VARILLUs O. JoNEs. 

